Controversial statue has been described by critics as ‘exploitative’ and ‘blatantly sexist’

A gigantic statue of Marilyn Monroe in downtown Palm Springs is set to be moved following years of controversy and debate.

The Forever Marilyn statue stands 26 feet tall and depicts the famous billowing skirt scene from 1955’s The Seven Year Itch.

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Created by artist Seward Johnson and first erected in 2011, the statue has had a troubled history. It left Palm Springs in 2014 and was displayed in Chicago, New Jersey, Australia and Connecticut before returning to Palm Springs in 2021.

At the time, the statue’s return to the city caused uproar. Activist groups protested during the unveiling, and critics described it as “exploitative.”

The placement of the sculpture had been voted for unanimously by the city council, but the last four directors of the art museum publicly opposed and condemned its presence in the area, branding it “blatantly sexist.”

Former Palm Springs Art Museum director Louis Gracho told The Art Newspaper: “You come out of the museum and the first thing you’re going to see is a 26-foot-tall Marilyn Monroe with her entire backside and underwear exposed.

  • @[email protected]
    38•4 months ago

    Honestly im not sure whats more sexist. Removing it because “indecency” or because “perceived sexism”. Are nude greek sculptures inherently super sexist? Or is that fine because those people have been dead for longer?

    • Coelacanth
      22•4 months ago

      Smells more of puritan sexual moral panic to me than actual concerns about sexism.

      • SharkEatingBreakfast
        5•4 months ago

        The sexual exploitation of Marilyn Monroe during her time in the industry gives this a troubling legacy.

        This is not “puritanical ideals” if you know the sad history of what this poor woman was forced to go through during her lifetime.

        • Coelacanth
          10•4 months ago

          That’s fair, though it seems the outrage in this instance was less about not wanting to celebrate the exploitation of a historical figure and more about not exposing the poor children to the horrific sexual image of a woman’s underwear.

    • @[email protected]English
      12•4 months ago

      Are nude greek sculptures inherently super sexist

      Yes because small pp. It’s very damaging to men’s reputation to show such tiny weewees in public

      • @[email protected]
        6•4 months ago

        I mean you could maybe argue along the lines of “she was coerced into it by the patriarchy” but i dont know enough about her to judge that.

    • @[email protected]English
      4•4 months ago

      I assume the complaint is actually related to attitudes at the time. Greek status etc show nude men and women. Because ancient Greek culture expressed no negativity towards bare breasts or shared nude bathing. So the artwork was never intended to be shocking. Greek Men amd women are known to have often shared public baths naked. And it is believed that women did not overly concern about covering both breasts in public.

      Where as the famous scene of Maralin Monroe was set upmby media to cause shock amd offence. Selling the model as a sexial object to be displayed to men who were not culturally expected to see random famous under garments,